Kombu

Botanical Name:Laminaria japonica

Other Names: konbu, kelp

Description: A dark green long thick sea vegetable
from the kelp family. Used frequently in Japanese cooking, it is an
essential ingredient of dashi, a flavorful stock. Kombu
contains significant amounts of glutamic acid, the basis of
monosodium glutamate (MSG).

Purchasing Information: Kombu is usually sold in 5 to
6-inch dried pieces and can be found in health food stores and
Japanese groceries. It is also sold as nalto kombu (shredded kombu
that cooks quickly), tororo kombu (vinegared, shaved kombu that needs
little or no cooking), shio-kombu (boiled, soy sauce flavored kombu),
kombu-zuke (lightly pickled kombu), and kombu-ko (powdered kombu that
can be sprinkled on food or used in drinks).

Basic Cooking Instructions: Dried kombu needs to be
simmered for at least 20 minutes to soften it and flavor the liquid.
If used only for flavoring stock, the kombu itself is removed from the
simmer liquid at the end of cooking and discarded.